Howard Miller Foundation
Zeeland, MI · EIN 38-2137226. Reported 286 grants totalling $5,158,500 to 70 recipients across tax years 2021-2025. This foundation did not tell the IRS it funds only preselected organizations.
Does this foundation accept applications?
Yes -- on its own tax return. Form 990-PF asks every private foundation whether it makes grants only to organizations it selects itself. Of the 91,758 foundations in our data that made a grant and answered, 78% said yes -- and applying to those is wasted effort. Howard Miller Foundation did not check that box on its most recent filing, which puts it in the minority that is at least open to being approached.
How big are its grants?
The median grant is $12,500. Half of everything it gave fell between $10,000 and $16,000; the smallest was $2,500 and the largest $379,000. If you are asking for materially more than the top of that range, you are asking the wrong foundation.
Every organization it funded
This is the complete list from its filings, largest first. Recipients are grouped by name and state as they were written on the returns, so an organization entered under two different names appears twice. Years funded is the number of separate tax years in which that name received money.
| Organization | Location | Total received | Grants | Years funded | Last |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Community Foundation of Holl-Zeel | Holland, MI | $1,136,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| City on a Hill Ministries | Zeeland, MI | $173,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Grand Rapids Art Museum | Grand Rapids, MI | $163,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Bethany Christian Services | Grand Rapids, MI | $125,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Grand Rapids Symphony | Grand Rapids, MI | $125,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Pine Rest | Grand Rapids, MI | $125,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Resthaven Care Community | Holland, MI | $113,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Salvation Army | Holland, MI | $105,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Hope College Development Services | Holland, MI | $100,000 | 4 | 4 | 2025 |
| Western Seminary | Holland, MI | $100,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Words of Hope | Grand Rapids, MI | $100,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| World Vision | Federal Way, WA | $100,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Mary Free Bed Rehab Hospital Foundation | Grand Rapids, MI | $97,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Ready for School | Holland, MI | $90,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Van Andel Institute | Grand Rapids, MI | $90,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Boys & Girls Club of Gr Holland | Holland, MI | $80,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Bread for the World Institute | Washington, DC | $80,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Dallas Theological Seminary | Dallas, TX | $80,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Holland Christian Schools Development Office | Holland, MI | $78,500 | 4 | 4 | 2025 |
| American Red Cross | Grand Rapids, MI | $63,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Aquinas College | Grand Rapids, MI | $63,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Calvin College | Grand Rapids, MI | $63,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Community Action House | Holland, MI | $63,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Compassionate Heart Ministry | Zeeland, MI | $63,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Davenport College | Grand Rapids, MI | $63,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Good Samaritan Ministries | Holland, MI | $63,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Grand Valley University Foundation | Grand Rapids, MI | $63,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Hospice of Holland | Holland, MI | $63,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Interlochen Center for the Arts | Interlochen, MI | $63,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| John Ball Park Zoo | Grand Rapids, MI | $63,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Meijer Gardens | Grand Rapids, MI | $63,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Oar | Holland, MI | $63,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Public Museum of Grand Rapids | Grand Rapids, MI | $63,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| United Way | Holland, MI | $63,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Zeeland Christian School | Zeeland, MI | $63,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| American Cancer Society | Grand Rapids, MI | $47,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Bridge Youth Ministry Center | Zeeland, MI | $47,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Camp Sunshine | Holland, MI | $47,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| CASA | Holland, MI | $47,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Evergreen Commons Senior Center | Holland, MI | $47,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Family Hope Foundation | Jenison, MI | $47,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Geneva Camp & Retreat Center | Holland, MI | $47,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Gilda's Club Grand Rapids | Grand Rapids, MI | $47,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Holland Area Arts Council | Holland, MI | $47,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Indian Trails Camp | Grand Rapids, MI | $47,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Junior Achievement | Grand Rapids, MI | $47,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Kendall College | Grand Rapids, MI | $47,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Kids' Food Basket | Grand Rapids, MI | $47,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Parkview Adult Foster Care | Zeeland, MI | $47,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Da Blodgett - St Johns | Grand Rapids, MI | $38,000 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| Fuller Theological Seminary Office of Development | Pasadena, CA | $38,000 | 4 | 4 | 2025 |
| Outdoor Discovery Ctr & | Holland, MI | $38,000 | 4 | 4 | 2025 |
| Center for Women in Transition | Allegan, MI | $37,500 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Grandville Calvin Christian Schools | Grandville, MI | $37,500 | 3 | 3 | 2025 |
| Holland Rescue Mission | Holland, MI | $37,500 | 3 | 3 | 2023 |
| Gateway Mission | Holland, MI | $25,500 | 2 | 2 | 2025 |
| Hope College | Holland, MI | $25,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Resilience | Holland, MI | $25,000 | 2 | 2 | 2025 |
| St Johns - Da Blodgett | Grand Rapids, MI | $25,000 | 2 | 2 | 2022 |
| Wings of Mercy Inc | Zeeland, MI | $25,000 | 5 | 5 | 2025 |
| Holland Christian Schools | Holland, MI | $19,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| 70X7 Life Recovery | Wyoming, MI | $15,000 | 2 | 2 | 2025 |
| Fuller Theological Seminary | Pasadena, CA | $9,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Outdoor Discovery Ctr & Macatawa Greenway | Holland, MI | $9,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Annissa Replogle - University of Michigan | Ann Arbor, MI | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Kaitlyn Busler - Grand Valley State University | Allegan, MI | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Meigan Ho - Grand Valley State University | Holland, MI | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Nathan Vandermeer - Grand Valley State University | Hudsonville, MI | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Yzrael Silguero - Michigan State University | Holland, MI | $5,000 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
| Brian Chesnutt - Northern Michigan University | Hastings, MI | $2,500 | 1 | 1 | 2021 |
60 of 70 (86%) received money in more than one year over the 5 years we hold.
Measured the way we measure every foundation -- what share of one year's grantees are funded again the next -- this one retains 97%, across 4 year-to-year transitions. The median foundation retains about 67%, so this one is unusually consistent. This measures how often it paid the same organizations again. It says nothing about whether it would consider a new one.
What the money was for
Taken verbatim from the purpose field of its filings. This is the closest thing to a statement of what this foundation cares about, in its own words.
- Community Foundation of Holl-Zeel
SUPPORT FOR GENERAL OPERATIONS
What kind of organizations it funds
By the activity category the IRS assigns each recipient, for the 159 grants where we could match the recipient to a registered organization. The categories are the IRS's. The match, made from the name and address on the return, is ours.
Giving by year
| Tax year | Grants | Total | Median grant |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 61 | $947,500 | $12,500 |
| 2022 | 55 | $1,136,000 | $12,500 |
| 2023 | 56 | $953,500 | $12,500 |
| 2024 | 57 | $974,000 | $12,500 |
| 2025 | 57 | $1,147,500 | $13,000 |
Tax years, not calendar years, and the most recent year is usually incomplete -- filings arrive about a year late, so a low final year means late paperwork rather than a foundation winding down.
Where its money goes
94% of its giving went to organizations in Michigan. If your organization is based elsewhere, look in the recipient list for grants to your area before writing.
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Funders that support the same organizations
These funders gave to organizations this one also funded -- some private foundations, some community foundations and other grantmaking charities. Shared grantees are a sign of overlapping priorities and nothing more: they do not show that any of these funders would consider a new organization. Each page says what its filings show.
How to approach this foundation
- Check you are its size. The median grant is $12,500. A request many times that size asks for something it has rarely or never given.
- Check you are in its geography. Its giving is concentrated in Michigan.
- Read the recipient list above for organizations like yours. If nothing on it resembles your work, that is a real answer, and a cheap one to get.
- Look up the current filing before writing. The 990-PF names the foundation's officers and, where one exists, its application procedure. We link it below.
Related guides
Where these numbers come from
Everything above is taken from Howard Miller Foundation's own Form 990-PF filings, which the IRS publishes in bulk. We used 5 returns (tax years 2021-2025). Grant figures are from its returns. Matching recipients to registered organizations, their IRS classifications, the retention rate and the funders that support the same organizations are our own calculations, described in how we build this.
Address of record on the latest return: 860 E Main Ave, Zeeland, MI, 49464. This is the address the foundation gave the IRS; many small foundations file through an accountant or a bank trust department, so it may not be where post to a programme officer should go.
EIN 38-2137226 · See the original filings on ProPublica · How we build this
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